Here Comes the Pitch!
by A Little Bird
Summary: a series of one-shots involving not only members of Nishiura's baseball team but everyone in the series
1. Tying Up the Chain

So this was a prompt on livejournal somewhere, with the food- I mean LOVE chain going something like this:

Izumi - Mizutani - Shinooka - Abe (and I added in Mihashi, because that's like implied!)

**Warnings:** BL, I guess, but most people who are into this show prolly won't be deterred by that.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own this anime/manga. If I did, Kazuki & Junta would have WAY more screen time.

**Summary:** Izumi finally comes out to his crush; & naturally all of Nishiura's baseball team has to put their say in.

"I like you."

Mizutani dropped his batting gloves.

"Um, I like you too - as a friend, and all," Mizutani replied, flustered. _Oh dear god, this is awkward. I hope he's not saying what I think he's saying._

"No, I mean I _like_ you," Izumi stressed.

"Say wha?" was the redhead's clever response.

"I like you," Izumi repeated once more. "Would it bother you if I tried to kiss you?"

"Ummm, kinda?" He was having difficulty absorbing the statement Izumi had said so plainly. "Are you for serious, dude? Because that's kinda weird, and... Shinooka! I like Shinooka!" Mizutani defended.

"You don't have a chance with Chiyo. She likes Abe," Tajima pointed out, walking over to his locker like hearing his two male teammates discussing their sexuality was nothing out of the ordinary.

Mizutani's squeak of "Tajima! How much did you hear?" was drowned out by Abe's "What, seriously? I don't wanna deal with that."

"Deal with what, man? If ya don't like her, just tell her so," Hanai reasoned, nonchalantly joining the conversation as he donned his street clothes.

"Ugh, turning down girls is delicate enough, but the team manager? I'm really glad she hasn't confessed or anything yet," Abe sighed.

"Why wouldn't you like her? She's cute, right?" Oki joined in.

"Yeah, she's cute, I guess. Just not my thing," Abe replied. He stripped out of his practice uniform, oblivious to his teammates questioning stares.

"What, pretty girls aren't your thing? You realize how bad that sounds, right?" Izumi said.

"Well, I mean, baseball's more important, right?" Abe retorted, cheeks reddening almost imperceptively.

"I'm thinking Abe would rather spend a day with Mihashi than Chiyo," Tajima suggested with lecherous intent, which was lost on Abe.

"Well, yeah," Abe agreed, still slightly blushing. "What's Mihashi got to do with it though?"

"Either way, Shinooka's not interested in you, so how bout it?" Izumi prodded.

Mizutani's head was still spinning from Abe's unintentionally dropped hints. "Wait, so Izumi, you're gay, and so is Abe?"

Abe bristled at this. "What the hell gives you that idea?" but Izumi shrugged his assent. "Yeah, pretty much."

"I've jerked off to fantasies of Hanai, if that helps any with the statistics," Tajima added. ("You _what_?")

"So Izumi likes Mizutani who likes Shinooka who likes Abe who likes baseball and m-me?" Mihashi wondered, gulping out the last bit of his theory.

"Yeah, and Abe and Mihashi tie up the chain because they obviously like each other," Tajima explained. (("W-what's he mean by t-that, Abe?" "I haven't the faintest idea.")). "So it's your duty to take care of stuff at the bottom!" was Tajima's conclusion.

"That's stupid reasoning!" Mizutani yelped.

"What, do you not think Izumi's attractive?" Nishihiro questioned somewhat skeptically (because really, he at least was straight).

"No!"

"Come on, you're totally lying! He's all long hair and big blue eyes! No one can resist that," Tajima objected.

"Fine, he's cute, now will you leave me alone? And stop grinning, Izumi!"


	2. So Scared to be Alone

**And now for some Tosei Slash! This pairing is Kazuki & Junta, Tosei's battery. I really don't understand how people can pair Riou with Junta when Kazuki's got like A MILLION times more chemistry-I mean... interaction... with him. I guess people just think Riou's prettier or something. Well, I guess he kinda is... but still!  
**

**Anyways, this fic is written mostly to prove that Junta wouldn't be the only intimidated with Kazuki's leaving for college; Kazu's prolly freaking out internally a bit too. Leaving home is scary, not that I'd know yet. But then again, Kazuki's prolly too responsible & mature to have a whole angst-freakout like I'd like to write. :P So, I'll just settle for "mature & dignified" cuddling. ? Weirdly enough, I pictured the dorms I stayed in during soccer camp for most of this. :p**

**Another note, the song Kazuki is humming is Passing Afternoon by Iron & WIne, which I listened to nearly the entire time I wrote this. Really, I just like the song, so it has next to nothing to do with the story... but the melancholy tune and the line "So scared to be alone"are my justification for connecting it to this ficlet. Also, the singer vaguely sounds like Kazuki's english dub voice at least, right? Right?  
**

**So... this is a draft, so it's incomplete, mostly because I need a climax to build up to & a nice ending. I think I might've made the story too cheesy, but it'll amuse someone until I edit it, so I'll leave it up here for awhile. Feedback is much appreciated, by the by, since I have little idea what to do to wrap this up. I think I need to go back and change a few parts too, so lemme hear your thoughts.**

**Anyways, enjoy, if at all possible. :p**

-Passing Afternoon-

Summary: In which Kazuki is the needier half of their battery, for once.

_There are things that drift away like our endless, numbered days..._

"Okay, on three. One, two... three!" Kazuki Kawai grunted as he lifted his side of the sofa. In front of him, Junta Takase heaved the opposite end of the furniture. Between the two of them, they managed to navigate the item throughout the common room & into the building's elevator. As the elevator doors shut, Junta let out a sigh and plopped himself down on the blue love seat.

"This is the last thing you're gonna need help taking up, right?" Junta asked, cracking one eye open to glance at his catcher.

"Yeah, I don't think there's anything left in the car," Kazuki answered. He turned to the vast array of floor levels and ran his finger quizzically down the panel's length before pressing the button for the 10th floor. It still boggled Kawai's mind a bit that there were 9 floors more above his. _This is such a tall building; I can't imagine how many people live here._

"I gotta say, I don't fancy movin' out so much now. All of this packing shit really tires me out," Junta lamented with a put upon expression.

Kazuki rolled his eyes, familiar with his pitcher's antics. "Well, lucky for you, I actually work 'til the job's done, so you can afford to slack off a bit whenever you're off to college."

"As it should be," Junta chuckled. "I'm glad this is the last thing though; it's starting to get dark already." With a_ ding!_, the elevator doors slid open. Junta made a show of sighing in his melodramatic fashion before hauling himself to his feet laboriously, as if the simple action was in fact a huge effort.

Again, the duo embarked on a treacherous journey through the halls of the building with Kazuki supplying directions for Junta, who was traveling backwards. Finally, they reached Kazuki's room, and after Junta somehow managed to move the door handle with his sneaker-ed foot, they entered the place and were relieved of the couch.

"Phew, I'm exhausted," Junta yawned. Without missing a beat, he fell backwards onto the room's bed and closed his eyes. The owner of said piece of furniture delivered a glare to his teammate that was only partly in jest. Muttering under his breath, Kazuki resigned himself to adjusting the couch's location in solitude before his attention once again returned to his pitcher.

"Is it so impossible to put down a piece of furniture without falling onto another?" Kazuki grumbled to himself. Much louder, he asked, "So are you going to leave me to sort out all of this by myself?" with a gesture to the multitude of cardboard boxes dotting the room.

"You bet, Kazu," Junta grinned, eyes still shut. "I helped haul up the TV, your mattress, your desktop computer, that sofa, and two bookcases. Did I mention the desktop computer? Seriously, who doesn't have a laptop in this age?" Here the catcher rolled his eyes and reached for the nearest box. "So, yeah, I think I've done my part." Kazuki smiled indulgently at his pitcher's complaints, already set to work on the box of clothes.

A comfortable silence enveloped the room, with Junta dozing off and Kazuki shuffling around the room unpacking. As the sun sank lower in the dorm room's window, Junta became aware of his catcher's humming. It was a soothing sound, the deep tenor of his sempai's voice evident as he continued the tune. The melody itself was bittersweet, and Junta couldn't shake the feeling he'd heard it before. He lay listening to his catcher pad around the room and the humming that accompanied the movement. Junta felt his eyelids drooping once more; before he realized how foggy and sluggish his thoughts were becoming, Junta was lulled to sleep.

Kazuki paused amidst his task of putting away textbooks to study Junta, who had begun sleeping in earnest.

"Dude, don't drool on my sheets." No response. "Guess he's asleep..." A puff of air that was not quite a sigh escaped the catcher's lips. With that action, Kazuki unfolded himself from his sitting position on the floor and stood up. After rummaging through another box he approached the bed, holding a quilt. _Pitchers are such delicate flowers. _

A few hours later, Junta awoke from his slumber somewhat hazily. As his eyes opened, he momentarily confused by his unfamiliar surroundings. Then awareness creeped back in him, and he woke fully. Rubbing at his eye with the palm of his hand, Junta cracked another eye open to scan the room for its inhabitant. Kazuki was not asleep, surprisingly. Instead, he sat on the couch they had previously brought in, fingering some trinket in his hands. The catcher's face was illuminated by the one light on in the room, a small lamp that cast a faint orange glow across its corner of the room. In that dim lighting, Junta could see that something was weighing heavily on his friend's mind. Junta slid the covers of the bed (that he didn't remember settling under) off his form and left the bed to join the other half of his battery on the sofa. Kazuki barely glanced at him, somberly studying the charm he held in his hand.

"Something up?" Junta was unnerved how soft his voice sounded in the night.

For a moment, Kazuki did not reply. Then, he spoke softly, "It's just sinking in again. The whole moving out gig. I'm still having trouble adjusting, I guess."

"You always over-think things, Kazu." Wordlessly, Junta held his palm out for Kazuki to hand him the charm. He frowned at the tingle in his fingers when Kazuki obliged, skin brushing skin. "This is the same charm that you keep in your baseball bag, right? The one your family gave you?" At Kazuki's nod, Junta smiled fondly at the trinket. He then turned that smile on his friend. "Don't worry so much, Kazu. You're only an hour or so away from home, and you've lost it if you think you're never going to hear from us again."

Kazuki grinned uncertainly at the ace. "Trust me," Junta urged gently, "no one is going to leave you alone for awhile. Everybody is just as freaked out about this as you are."_ I know I'm more than a little anxious about this, _Junta admitted to himself.

Kazuki sighed, and dropped his head against his teammate's shoulder. Junta's heart sped up at the contact, however small. _Whoah, what? Slow down, there's no reason to freak out. It's just Kazu-san..._ Junta rationalized to himself, wondering at his weird reaction.

"You'll visit my little sister, right? Let her know how I'm doing, keep her company, cheer her on at her softball games?" Kazuki requested, eventually. His position had not shifted.

Junta blinked at the request. "Of course." _He trusts me that much?_

"And you're still under an obligation to put up with my parents, chat it up with them whenever you see them," Kazuki laughed. The puffs of air from this action hit Junta's shoulder, causing shivers to run down his spine. Junta managed to nod his assent.

"Done freaking out now?" Junta asked after another odd pause.

Kazuki nodded, the gesture rubbing oddly against Junta's shirt. "Almost."

When Kazuki didn't elaborate, Junta asked, "You okay, man?"

"Yeah. I am."

Junta didn't respond. He couldn't think of anything to add, so he didn't.

**&& here I trail off awkwardly. :]**


End file.
